If it's 10 p.m. on a Saturday night in Denver and you're downtown, you may stumble across Stephen Demmert doing what he does best: capturing the beauty of the bustling nightlife scene. Neon lights, glowing food trucks, and exotic cars are a handful of subjects used in Demmert's photography. His work offers a beautiful perspective on the landscapes of Colorado we often take for granted.

Words to live by: 

Sink or swim, it's your decision. I have it tattooed on my knuckles as a reminder that whether I succeed or fail, it's my decisions that affect my life and nobody else's.

Guilty pleasure: 

Binge watching F**K That's Delicious while I edit photos. Action Bronson is one of my favorite artists and the way he describes food on his show really inspires me while I edit. 

Hobby outside of photography: 

I love camping. I've been camping since I was a year old and always find the time throughout the year to leave the camera equipment at home and just relax outdoors. Camping is always my time to reset, and reinspire myself on new photo ideas and goals.

Equipment:

I shoot with a Sony A7R IV. I've always been a run and gun shooter so having a lightweight body as my main camera body is a necessity to me. With that body I am usually shooting with a G master 85mm as my primary lens and then a G master 16-35mm lens when I'm doing more landscape shots.

How did you get your start with photography? 

My first experience with photography was on an Alaskan cruise my sophomore or junior year of high school. My Mom owned a Nikon D70 with a giant telephoto lens which she brought to capture wildlife. I think that entire trip she took 10 photos and I took close to 8,000. That trip solidified that photography was always gonna be a passion in my life. It wasn't till about 2017 that I started doing photography professionally when I started up with food photography.

Favorite subject matter? 

I don't know if I have a favorite at this point. Night life has been where I've really enjoyed myself the most. Everything from food trucks, to the people walking around. I think the big thing you see in my photography is neon signs or the illusion that a neon sign is shining somewhere. I love neon signs and feel they add a really cool element to anyones photos.

What's been the most important key to your success? 

Pushing myself outside my comfort zone. Too many people get overly comfortable with the style of photography they shoot or with always needing perfect photography conditions. I think being able to diversify yourself helps grow not just your skills, but your confidence as well. It allows you to not panic if something goes wrong during a shoot.

When is your favorite time to shoot? 

Night time, no doubt. Specifically after 10 pm on a Saturday night in downtown area of any city. The night life that presents itself at that time whether it be people going to bars, exotic cars driving around, or amazing food trucks serving up some fantastic food are always my favorite subjects to shoot.


What do you love most about photographing Colorado? 

I love the diversity. Being able to drive to the mountains to capture amazing landscape shots, then to downtown Denver to capture the nightlife is truly a blessing. Colorado offers a-lot of photography opportunities for people to learn and experience.

Favorite place to photograph in Colorado?

I have 3. Lake Isabelle up in Nederland. It was the first landscape shot I ever captured out here in Colorado. Anywhere in downtown Denver, specifically at night. Denver truly brings a different kind of night photography feel. And Maroon Bells, I mean, who doesn't love Maroon Bells? Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall, Maroon Bells is always a photographers dream shot.

Shameless plug:  

I take true candid shots during true candid moments.